Overview:  In this launch the teacher attempts to establish a connection with students’ experiences making shadow puppets, and the teacher introduces the practice of shadow puppetry in Indonesian culture.  First, the teacher asks students to recall any experiences they have had seeing or putting on a puppet show.  Some students share experiences making shadow puppets with their hands and a flashlight.  Students have done this either in early grades at school or on their own.  After students share these experiences, the teacher introduces students to Wayang, an ancient form of puppetry in Indonesian culture.  The teacher shows students a book about Wayang and shows how a puppeteer holds a puppet, and where the light source and screen are placed.  The teacher tells students that in their work on the problem they will need to think about putting on a puppet show and how they would place all the materials to make the shadow.

Prior knowledge:  The teacher makes a connection with students’ prior knowledge of the context of the problem.  The teacher seems to expect that students have some experience either seeing or putting on a puppet show.  Perhaps it is possible that one or two students in the class have seen a Wayang puppet show.  Students indicate that they know how to make basic shadow puppets.  By introducing Wayang, the teacher seems to try to connect students’ experiences with a much bigger cultural practice.  The teacher points out that shadow puppetry is not simply something that small children do, but it is a rich and important aspect of Indonesian culture.

Other points of interest:  When the teacher asks students about their prior experiences with puppet shows, she seems to be trying to elicit a response that would exemplify shadow puppetry as a cultural art form.  Students keep offering ideas about making shadow puppets on the walls, with no connection to the meaning behind shadow puppetry.  When Ryder says that he saw a puppet show in kindergarten, the teacher asks, “did you go to a show?” seemingly probing whether Ryder may have seen a show like Wayang or something similar.  Even though students do not seem to have prior knowledge of shadow puppetry as an art form, the teacher introduces Wayang, most likely to give students a better sense of the context of the problem.  It is not clear for students how much their prior knowledge of making shadow puppets is related to the Wayang tradition.